Jan. 8, 2012, after about 2 years on No S:
I'm nervous and excited about finally writing this because I love No S so much and want to sing it to the high heavens, and not after just the honeymoon phase of success. At age 58 and two years (since my official commitment- three years since I "met" No S), this marriage is going to last!

I can’t be a source of hope for anyone who is trying to get into the low end of his/her BMI range, but there are others who can. However, No S HAS SAVED MY EATING LIFE AND MY SANITY AROUND FOOD. In 2 years, I’ve lost 24 lbs./13% of my weight, from 185 to 161-obese and heavier than 60% of my peers to overweight and heavier than only 36% of them, and am still losing, having only recently instituted regular exercise. Not the huge drops some have, but I had some setbacks, and yet I’m stronger now than ever, unlike most people who follow traditional diets; they are usually heavier 2 years later. Plus, I look good in my clothes and I feel confident and peppy. I wasn’t even sure I would lose weight on No S, but I knew I had to do something about my insane compulsion to overeat, mostly sweets, and mostly in private. If you want freedom from the tyranny of food as much as or even (as I did) more than weight loss, I ecstatically recommend it!

(BTW, the National Weight Loss Registry reports that it takes 2-5 years of compliance for the likelihood of relapse of overeating to drop to 25%, and this is only in the 3-15% who actually do lose weight in the first place. And those people do not usually get thin, just thinner. Sobering news, and more reason not to choose radical plans, in my opinion. Consistent moderation forever!)

• I no longer worry about the pull of fattening or processed foods/ carbs/sugar. I can have small amounts without going overboard-- or none.
• I don’t fear restaurants or social eating situations where lots of food is available, or leave them and go buy junk to gorge on in private.
• I don’t feel deprived or in food prison.
• I’m completely happy with the program. I’m not afraid that there’s a better, faster way to get lean and mean that will last.
• I love my three meals a day and love getting hungry. I overeat some on the weekends, but less and less, and I enjoy all that I do eat.
• I stuck it out even when I was bingeing on weekends much longer than many and it has paid off. Don't fear the weekends!
• Thank you, thank you, thank you, Reinhard and all the long-term No S-ers here.

The challenge for anyone with disordered eating is to find the right balance of ordered eating to counteract it. As I see it, the major problem is too many random decisions to eat a lot of calorie-dense food, especially in the face of promises to self not to eat. Traditional diets are too directive; many programs for binge eating recommend frequent eating and very little structure. No S has been the best of both worlds for this recovering disordered secret “emotional” binge eater, even though it was not designed for it: a program that promotes flexible food choices with ordered limited access to food that promotes appropriate hunger, and free eating on weekends to promote more independent judgment. Jackpot! I found that it didn’t matter what the reason was for my wanting to eat during the week. I just didn’t do it between meals. So freeing. And two years of mostly compliant weekdays has tamed my weekends enviably.

History for those who need to hear if it matches their problems: I started eating sweets secretly when I was about 10 years old and was told at 12 to lose 10 pounds (I weighed 120 at 5’4”). I did not, and weighed 145 (at 5'6") after high school when I went on my first real diet for a gymnastics class (even though I was in my normal BMI range). Over nearly 40 years, I managed to stick to diets and lose weight for probably about 3 years total in that time. The rest of the time, I agonized over eating and my body, never able to stick to my attempts to cut eating sweets, especially at night. My disordered eating got progressively worse so that my weight rose from mostly in the 140-150’s before my 40's to eventually to over 200 for a short time at near 50. I dropped from 197 to 177 on WW, whittled down to the mid 160's on my own, and slowly climbed again. I first joined No S in October of 2008 (age 55), probably weighing 180, had brief success, but fell off after Thanksgiving and didn’t return in earnest until Dec. 26, 2009 at 185. I WAS DESPERATE AND KNEW THAT MY DISORDERED EATING WOULD ONLY GET WORSE AND BE WITH ME MY LAST YEARS ON THIS PLANET IF I DIDN'T DO SOMETHING, AND I KNLEW IT WASN'T GOING TO BE A DIET. I knew that eating 5-6 meals a day as I had been for 7 years was not stopping it. I knew that though intuitive eating had helped me get rid of a lot of food prejudices against supposedly fattening foods, I hadn’t been able to use it to lose weight or control binging. I knew that though I had actually learned a lot about what combinations of whole foods I enjoyed and actually satisfied me on traditional diets, I wouldn’t follow one, nor track calories forever. And I believed that at least for me, there was no food I couldn't learn to eat in moderation. No S was and remains my best bet, and I am so grateful I found it! I may alter what I eat at meals or how much on weekends but I will never go back to snacking, tracking, or sweets every day. This is it!

May we all find peace with food soon.

Update, Mar. 20, 2012. At age 58, I am officially recording my weight only four times a year-- and avoiding the scale most other times. However, I weighed myself for the last week every day and averaged the results. My weight is 154.08, which puts me in the-tada!- normal weight category of the BMI! For the first time since 1995, I believe. It also brings my total weight loss on No S to 31 lbs, or 16.7% of my body weight.

Update, Jan. 22, 2013, after 3 years on No S, age 59.

This fall, another three pounds came off, which makes the total lost during my third year on No S 10 lbs. Surprising to me was that people kept asking me recently if I had lost weight. Three pounds can make such a difference? Not for me to say, though I finally bought some smaller pants. Can't even say it was because of the weight lifting or putting on muscle because I don't do resistance work or any exercise consistently-- yet.! If people ask what I've been doing, I stress that it has taken years of staying on habit.

So in three years I've lost 18% of my original weight with a BMI of 24.4. I weigh less than 76% of my American peers, not that it's a competition. (When I graduated from high school, my BMI was 23.4. In today's society, that would make me lighter than 47% of my 18-year-old peers. I was so ashamed of my body then. It was the age of Twiggy. I think it's even worse now, as I've read that it's typical for normal weight 4th graders to talk of dieting.)

Still haven't incorporated regular exercise, darn me, but can walk far and dance hard when I need to.

Another benefit, I believe, is that I stress even less if I do overeat. I may have misled on other posts, implying that that never happens. It does, just as thin people sometimes overeat. They don't freak. That's what makes them normal.

The quantity of what I call dense foods (protein, starch, fat) that satisfies me at a meal has decreased even more. Still having half a plate of freggies at lunch and dinner along with the dense foods._________________Count plates, not calories. Three a day. 8 years & counting
Age 64
SBMI Jan/10-30.8
Jan/12-26.8
Mar/13-24.9 Stayed at +/- 8-lb. for three years Sept/17 22.8 (but more fluctuation)
Mar/18 22.2

There is no S better than Vanilla No S.

Last edited by oolala53 on Wed Mar 06, 2013 5:05 am; edited 11 times in total

THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! OOLALA for posting this very exciting and inspirational testimonial. Many, Many congratulations to you too for remaining on the No S Plan through thick and thin. (Particularly those S Days which as many of us know, can be pretty excessive ). It makes me confident that I, too, can hopefully tame down my S Days over time - more importantly however, your message reinforces one's faith in the No S Plan.

Thank you also for your very candid and interesting story/background on your eating/dieting history. It could have almost written this myself, I could identify with so much of what you have written.

All the very best to you as you - WE - continue on this No S Journey together.

A BIG THANK YOU ALSO TO REINHARD FOR SAVING MY SANITY, FREEING ME FROM FOOD ANXIETY (STILL WORKING ON THE SCALES) AND SAVING ME MONEY BY NOT BUYING ANY MORE DIET BOOKS OR PRODUCTS THAT NEVER WORKED IN THE FIRST PLACE!!

Congratulations on your success! It is incredibly inspiring to hear your story, especially for someone who is relatively new to this diet. Thank you very much for sharing it with us. I also want to thank you for the time you take to encourage others on this board! It is greatly appreciated!_________________Height 5'8" Age 48
Goal Weight: 160

For those of us prone to binging on sweets (in private, public, or any situation), the shame and guilt can be overwhelming, and we feel, particularly after a binge, that there is no hope. Your story proves that there is.

I found No S in 2011, committed in the Fall, and then had an almost identically timed relapse as you did (mid-November through end of December). Like you, I returned to NO S because I know that more restrictive dieting will just lead to more of the same yo-yoing for me.... and I am ready for that cycle to be over with.

I will continue follow your story with enthusiasm, and look to mirror your success.

Cheers!
Simmstone_________________"No S is such a good way to combat the randomness, which is often the slide into more and more." - oolala53

Congratulations and thank you for posting! I am so happy for you and really enjoyed reading your thoughtful update.

One aspect I found particularly interesting particularly interesting was your use of the phrase "disordered eating." We usually hear it in reverse: "eating disorder," which implies that we are the helpless victim of some condition. "Disordered eating," on the other hand, is active, an activity in fact. It's so simply descriptive of what the problem is -- and, as you point out, immediately suggestive of the cure: ordered eating.

I also like your phrase "the tyranny of food." It's so counter to the way we tend to think these days -- that freedom means the freedom to indulge our desires -- and yet so profoundly true: often the real freedom is freedom from our desires. A very ancient Greek perspective!

And hey, don't knock your numbers -- that's a pretty impressive transformation even on the level of mere quantity. Congratulations!

What a great way to start 2012. Best wishes for the rest of the year and beyond,

Thanks for sharing your story! I can relate to alot of it, so it was very encouraging to me. I found it especially encouraging that you had success after trying No S, then fell off the wagon for while, only to return and succeed. Gives hope to the many no S'ers who are struggling. And the goals you have achieved (especially the emotional part of it) sound wonderful - gives much inspiration!

I never really left the program in my mind but had lots of weeks that were not green. I just knew it was possible and preferable to anything else that was going to involve more decision-making._________________Count plates, not calories. Three a day. 8 years & counting
Age 64
SBMI Jan/10-30.8
Jan/12-26.8
Mar/13-24.9 Stayed at +/- 8-lb. for three years Sept/17 22.8 (but more fluctuation)
Mar/18 22.2

Hi oolala53- I really enjoyed reading your experience with No S. In fact, it was you who referred me here after an exchange of comments on my Amazon review of Eat What You Love.

I must admit, I was skeptical when you mentioned the No S Diet, but I've since read the website and reserved a copy of the book at the library!

I connected with much of what you said, especially:

Quote:

I knew that though intuitive eating had helped me get rid of a lot of food prejudices against supposedly fattening foods, I hadn’t been able to use it to lose weight.

This has been my experience as well. I had high hopes for intuitive eating, but it didn't always solve my issue of excessive snacking (I realize this is something *I* control, not anyone else; not blaming intuitive eating of course). The snacking eventually led to overeating and thus the binge/restrict cycle began to repeat itself.

I would agree that the No S Diet can work well for some individuals with disordered eating, even though I understand that's not its intention. Like intuitive eating, it removes the labels of "good" and "bad" foods, but still encourages the right amount of self-discipline to adequately nourish your body without having to rely on restrictive techniques like calorie-counting or food lists.

I'm quite encouraged by the information I've read so far and look forward to giving the program an honest try, starting today. Although I've been stuck in various diet cycles since I was a kid, I'm still hopeful that I can normalize my eating habits and maintain a healthy weight without bouncing back and forth between under and overeating. Thanks!_________________http://www.stretchjeanincident.com

In my opinion, the problem with intutive eating is not knowing when is hungry enough. I've been able to wait much longer for many meals on my N days than I probably would have chosen to if hunger had been my only guide, but I like it. IE leaves too much of the burden on me! It's funny, because on weekends, waiting until I was hungry enough to eat again has often been my problem. And there was too much pressure to choose the exact right thing because I didn't know when I would get hungry again. Now I know I get to eat again in a few hours on N days, unless I'm really still STUFFED. Although I am usually hungry for my meals on N days, I do sometimes eat when I'm not. But it all averages out. However, eating too often on weekends will make weight loss come to a stand still. At least, that's my experience.

I got Eat What You Love out of the library yesterday! I've skimmed it, but it still looks like the same problem; it takes too much analysis for just deciding to eat a meal! I save that for weekends. However, i will look at ti a bit more closely when I have time.

Be patient! Keep going! What's the alternative? Did you see that we just got another one back from WW on the main board? It's almost inevitable!_________________Count plates, not calories. Three a day. 8 years & counting
Age 64
SBMI Jan/10-30.8
Jan/12-26.8
Mar/13-24.9 Stayed at +/- 8-lb. for three years Sept/17 22.8 (but more fluctuation)
Mar/18 22.2

In my opinion, the problem with intutive eating is not knowing when is hungry enough.

Exactly! That was my experience as well. My intuition eventually became to eat anything I wanted on a whim, haha. And because of my work schedule, I really do need to have 3 solid meals a day; it's just much more simple and keeps my anxiety low.

Oolala,
Spending some time on the site this morning reading. Found your testimonial here and so glad I did. Truly inspiring to me at this point in my journey! Thanks so much for sharing and CONGRATS!!_________________"Rivers know this: There is no hurry. We shall get there some day." ~Winnie the Pooh ~

A Flower does not think of competing with the flower next to it. It just blooms!

Hi,
I have just started to read the book but have no idea what i should put on those 3 plates a day. My cooking skills are boiling water and microwave chicken- yuk- don't ask. what does someone who does not cook put on those plates?thanks for any help possible because i am tired of being overweight.linda

I wonder how one deals with binge eating.. i am 57 and have done it for years and until i was 52 i could "get away" with it but no longer. I have tried nutra systems, primal diet, you name it. i go to the gym 4 -5 days a week but- big butt- at night i want snacks.any suggestions? i want to change how i view food and change these patterns cause they don't work. Define insanity - what i have been doing.help!

What have you been eating already? My advise would be to start with that, minus the sweets, and put it on your plate as much as fits. If you've been eating lots of sweets, try buying veggie tray and some fresh fruit like apples, tangerines, bananas, berries, dried fruit and nuts. Put some of that on your plate too. I do like to cook, but when I don't feel like cooking, I make a sandwich, add some veggies and fruit and nuts to the plate and eat it. Or I pour some granola and milk into a bowl, add a banana or dried fruit and nuts and whole miilk. Some of the complete bagged salads are quite good too._________________Patty

Anxiety in a person’s heart weighs him down, but an encouraging word brings him joy. (Proverbs 12:25 NET)
I'm a glutton for encouragement.

Alikatz, Since this is a testimonial thread, I'm going to write to you separately about this. I also suggest you look at the thread under the general discussions called "Intelligent Dietary Defaults." Plus, browse some of the check in threads to find some on which the members post their meals. Even though No S doesn't require recording food, some people like to.

It's not too late to get this right!_________________Count plates, not calories. Three a day. 8 years & counting
Age 64
SBMI Jan/10-30.8
Jan/12-26.8
Mar/13-24.9 Stayed at +/- 8-lb. for three years Sept/17 22.8 (but more fluctuation)
Mar/18 22.2

My first post so not sure of forum etiquette but just wanted to say a massive congratulations on your wonderful progress.
I saw your amazon review and left a comment a few days ago. I'm kind of your stalker, but in a good way i promise.

Anyway, i liked your thoughts on Intuitive Eating as that is what i always seem to fall back on when another diet fails. However, i have never had any success either.
My main problem is that i have high hopes that another 'perfect' diet is waiting round the corner for me to discover, i have agonised over this plan, that plan and end up binging almost every night vowing to start afresh tomorrow and so the cycle continues.

No s diet does truly seem like a revelation, i can honestly see myself eating this way for life. My main problem is that i worry it wont work for me, my appetite is too great for a calorie defecit etc etc. I am sure its not as today i have had 2 perfectly well rounded meals but this is what i tell myself.
I cant seem to take the emphasis off of weight loss, when i want too. I want to lead a normal life but i desperately want to lose weight too. I'm just over 14 stones (thats about 200lb, i'm a brit )

Anyway, i don't expect you to have all the answers, i came here just to say well done but i've rambled on. Sorry.

Please do start a check-in thread. But don't think you absolutely have to be caught up in this as you might have been on diets. I always made diets a part-time job. I still spend a lot of time on this issue because I either consider it so interesting or I'm a personal mess. I actually envy some people who disappear from the boards because I'm hoping it means the issue is not much of one for them anymore.

I don't presume to lay the burden of reading all my posts on you, but if you did, you would see that I had some tough times, especially with S days. However, I never thought they undercut the value of the lifestyle. But I sure did a lot of wailing and woe is me over the fact that I still want to eat too much on weekends. It's just that "too much" has gotten smaller and smaller.

I completely understand all your fears, but the truth is we can't know everything up front. That's diet head. The diet books made all kinds of promises; even No S does it to some degree. But you have to live it to really understand how to make it work for you. And that will keep changing overtime, too. It's a 5-year process. It takes time for your appetite to decrease and- surprise!- it takes time to accept that it's smaller and actually eat less! But so what? Where has being in a hurry ever gotten us? I believe people struggle with maintenance because they didn't give themselves time to really adjust to the changes or made too many too fast._________________Count plates, not calories. Three a day. 8 years & counting
Age 64
SBMI Jan/10-30.8
Jan/12-26.8
Mar/13-24.9 Stayed at +/- 8-lb. for three years Sept/17 22.8 (but more fluctuation)
Mar/18 22.2

I completely understand all your fears, but the truth is we can't know everything up front. That's diet head. The diet books made all kinds of promises; even No S does it to some degree. But you have to live it to really understand how to make it work for you. And that will keep changing overtime, too. It's a 5-year process. It takes time for your appetite to decrease and- surprise!- it takes time to accept that it's smaller and actually eat less! But so what? Where has being in a hurry ever gotten us? I believe people struggle with maintenance because they didn't give themselves time to really adjust to the changes or made too many too fast.

Oolala, well said! Thanks, I needed this. _________________Patty

Anxiety in a person’s heart weighs him down, but an encouraging word brings him joy. (Proverbs 12:25 NET)
I'm a glutton for encouragement.

Did my quarterly weigh-in. I'm down from BMI 24.4 to 23.8. It's a small change in weight, but feels like more. My original thought was that I might get to a size 10, but bought size 8 pants a few weeks ago. And I'm turning 60 in 5 days. Not bad to weigh about what I weighed when I graduated from high school.

So, I've lost 22% of my weight, or about 42 lbs. in 44 months. A little over one more year to go before the relapse rate drops to 27%. Yee haw._________________Count plates, not calories. Three a day. 8 years & counting
Age 64
SBMI Jan/10-30.8
Jan/12-26.8
Mar/13-24.9 Stayed at +/- 8-lb. for three years Sept/17 22.8 (but more fluctuation)
Mar/18 22.2

Hi Miss Oolala, success story extraordinaire.
I think you should know how important your posts are to me. I look up to you as a woman that has found moderation, and I want to be like you!
Thank you for continuing to post on the NoS forums.
I am curious.....do you feel you NEED to post to stay on NoS? Or is it the teacher in you that finds satisfaction in knowing the difference you are making for the rest of us?
Whatever the reasons, thanks..... I appreciate you so much!_________________Month/Year-BMI
8/13-26.3; 8/14-24.5; 5/15-26.2; 1/16-26.9; 9/16-25.6; 8/17-25.8; 11/17-26.9; 3/18-25.6; 8/18-24.5; 10/18 - 23.8

This is super inspiring, thank you. I don't have too much weight to lose, hardly any actually, but I know that my eating has gotten out of control and I'm trying to find ways to fix it. I'm tired of the whole spiral of eating 'bad' food - feeling guilty - eating more to compensate. I've just started No-S, and I'm already so happy - I'm feeling excited by food and looking forward to my next meal, rather than feeling guilty about it! This is great!_________________instagram: sam_as_always

I'm wobbling a bit in my last 8 months leading up to five years, but this meal-based eating is still the core of my approach to living WITH food._________________Count plates, not calories. Three a day. 8 years & counting
Age 64
SBMI Jan/10-30.8
Jan/12-26.8
Mar/13-24.9 Stayed at +/- 8-lb. for three years Sept/17 22.8 (but more fluctuation)
Mar/18 22.2

Well, it's been awhile since I checked in. I guess I felt I was wobbling enough that I didn't want to discourage anyone. I never lost faith that having consistent habits, not snacking-thus longer meal gaps- being one of them, was key. I went through a long, long time of wavering because I had actually lost much hunger but not the desire for food, so I felt that I was almost back to dieting. I didn't wish for certain foods, even though I had gone back to semi-bingeing on old favorites, but I wished I could comfortably eat more. But basic No S aspriations finally got me back down to my regular maintenance weeight.

Then I guess since New Year's I got the bug to make more changes that have to do with keeping mental acuity. Once again, things I had been told years ago finally seemed smart and doable, so I've been doing them. They aren't canonical No S, but I very much consider them to be possible so much because of the discipline and benefits I had received for so long from the structure. And they aren't THAT far off, though some would think that anything that involves not eating a meal might be.

How I'm living right now is NOT what I would recommend to newbies unless they have a present health condition that could benefit from big changes. Sure, I probably would have benefited from changing sooner, but ya just have to have your own motivation. I won't pretend I'm gluten sensitive or anything else just because people who are and make changes might lose weight, etc. But I am willing to make changes for other health issues, and I have.

Anyway, I did my spring equinox weighing this past week and discovered I'm six pounds down from the weight I had been for a few years. Thus since officially starting in January of 2010, I've lost 48 lbs, likely to maintain, which is a drop of 8 points total on the BMI scale, and 26% of my starting weight. Weight loss has never been the goal, but I know a lot of people are impressed by it. Overall, I don't actually believe my general health is much better for the changes and loss, but I do believe that my future mental abilities and immune system will be enhanced. I have no proof. Just going on faith, and it feels relatively easy, plus has other possible benefits, so it's my new "during."

I'll probably give more details, if I haven't already, on my regular check-in thread, but really, the particulars a person does are not as crucial as motivation and belief that the changes are fair and reasonable for the results desired.

I just want to emphasize that No S has been instrumental in my weaning myself off "extra" food. I've continued to learn that I can very comfortably eat less often and, over time, less food but higher quality food. This continues to evolve. Others might think I am being "so good," but it just feels like less trouble than grappling with the mental and physical fallout of NOT doing it. And I had less to contend with than some.

It really is worth it! Keep pressing on! And if you can, imagine a health scare that you really care about! Before you actually have one, if you can. _________________Count plates, not calories. Three a day. 8 years & counting
Age 64
SBMI Jan/10-30.8
Jan/12-26.8
Mar/13-24.9 Stayed at +/- 8-lb. for three years Sept/17 22.8 (but more fluctuation)
Mar/18 22.2

There is no S better than Vanilla No S.

Last edited by oolala53 on Thu Mar 24, 2016 1:08 am; edited 1 time in total

Thanks, Reinhard. I'll add that even since my post, I had a DEXA scan and found that my fat content is about the same as it was 20 years ago, unlike most people whose fat ratio as gone up. It's nowhere near media-beautiful bf %age, but not far off a "healthy" limit. Also found that the distribution, though not cosmetically ideal, is not a health risk at all. And my bone density is very good, so eating less and eating more quality food on my plates is apparently not wearing away my bones. Given that I now outweigh about only about 11% of my societal peers, rather than the 64% I started at, I guess society would judge me acceptable. But who's comparing?

Continuing with my recent eating adjustments and more consistency with movement will likely pay off similarly in vitality and body comp shifts, knock on wood._________________Count plates, not calories. Three a day. 8 years & counting
Age 64
SBMI Jan/10-30.8
Jan/12-26.8
Mar/13-24.9 Stayed at +/- 8-lb. for three years Sept/17 22.8 (but more fluctuation)
Mar/18 22.2

That's wonderful, Oolala! Should have included those extra stats in my facebook posting just now:

"I just want to emphasize that No S has been instrumental in my weaning myself off 'extra' food. I've continued to learn that I can very comfortably eat less often and, over time, less food but higher quality food. This continues to evolve. Others might think I am being 'so good,' but it just feels like less trouble than grappling with the mental and physical fallout of NOT doing it." -- so writes No S Veteran oolala53 in her most recent yearly check-in. And at six years on habit, 48 pounds down, 8 BMI points down, and -26% of her starting body weight, she knows whereof she speaks. Please join me in learning more and congratulating her at the full posting:

Wonderful, wonderful post, Oola...you inspire me b/c I hope that as I continue establishing the vanilla No S habit my overeating-related health issues will continue to improve while enjoying that wonderful side effect of continuing my weight loss. I've decided that any tweaking will be done by adjusting what/how much goes on each plate but keeping to that three, largely because it has worked so well for you.
Very happy for you--see you over on SP._________________Peace out,
Mary S

SF, glad to hear it, though your health issues might merit appropriate mods. The important characteristics about mods is that they are fair, supportive of the big picture, and that any loss of momentary pleasure is balanced by the more steady pleasure of the effects of moderation AND the knowledge that we are doing the best for ourselves. The habit of sitting with our plate and truly enjoying even simple food can go a long way as well._________________Count plates, not calories. Three a day. 8 years & counting
Age 64
SBMI Jan/10-30.8
Jan/12-26.8
Mar/13-24.9 Stayed at +/- 8-lb. for three years Sept/17 22.8 (but more fluctuation)
Mar/18 22.2

It's been about 2 years since I checked in here. If my calculations are right, it's been 3,000 days since I seriously committed to No S. I have tweaked it over the years and done some modding on meal frequency to accommodate reduced hunger, but it is still the foundation most days of the week. I also did my spring week weigh-in and averaged the results. I'm at a lower weight than I was two years ago. I don't know if my weight will stay here; it's my habits that are more important._________________Count plates, not calories. Three a day. 8 years & counting
Age 64
SBMI Jan/10-30.8
Jan/12-26.8
Mar/13-24.9 Stayed at +/- 8-lb. for three years Sept/17 22.8 (but more fluctuation)
Mar/18 22.2

In the interest of full disclosure, I've had a bit of a relapse the last week. It's a drag, but I don't see it as a downward spiral to the end of No S. I get disappointed that I'm vulnerable at all, but I don't seem to be able to become one of the impervious-to-overeating recoverers, so I live in the good-enough world._________________Count plates, not calories. Three a day. 8 years & counting
Age 64
SBMI Jan/10-30.8
Jan/12-26.8
Mar/13-24.9 Stayed at +/- 8-lb. for three years Sept/17 22.8 (but more fluctuation)
Mar/18 22.2

I have to add that when I posted the last comment, advertisements for huge packages of muffins showed up below. Not what I relapsed with but I guess the algorithm would work for a lot of people!_________________Count plates, not calories. Three a day. 8 years & counting
Age 64
SBMI Jan/10-30.8
Jan/12-26.8
Mar/13-24.9 Stayed at +/- 8-lb. for three years Sept/17 22.8 (but more fluctuation)
Mar/18 22.2

In the interest of full disclosure, I've had a bit of a relapse the last week. It's a drag, but I don't see it as a downward spiral to the end of No S. I get disappointed that I'm vulnerable at all, but I don't seem to be able to become one of the impervious-to-overeating recoverers, so I live in the good-enough world.

The fact you don't see it as the end to NoS is enough, what do you do to get back on habit when that happens?

Jx_________________Never give up on a dream just because of the time it will take to accomplish it. The time will pass anyway.

Usually, it just seems to play itself out. I'lll either get so uncomfortable that I'm am re-inspired to just suffer through withdrawal, knowing it's better than continuing the overeating. Or, occasionally, there will be a health consideration that makes sense to me in a way it didn't before. though that can waver. I think that is rising up now, as I had a sobering talk with a therapist today about mood issues. She didn't bring up any nutritional aspects, and I don't know if I'm just using it as an excuse, but it sounds very reasonable right now to do some sweets restricting. How can I know if it will have an effect or not if I don't give it a good shot? I don't want to get into a lot of specifics because making up front declarations hardly ever works for me, besides committing to No S years ago. All the other adjustments have evolved and it's only after the change has been in place for awhile that it becomes obvious.

I have the last of my stores loosely mapped out. There are still a few days' worth, which may get a bit extended if I eat out, as I did for lunch today. I just ran out of time getting things organized before I had to take off before lunch time, not to return until this evening. I went to a fast food Greek place. It's a local chain, a branch of which I would dearly love to see in my neighborhood. There is a restaurant space for lease not far away. I think a neighbor said she actually approached the management at one of the branches to consider coming to our 'hood. I want an alternative to the ubiquitous bread/pasta/fried potato starches. They didn't go for it but at the time, it was a different restaurant space that was available. I should be proactive and at least call on Monday to ask again. All they can do is dash my hopes and say no.

Having a freggie dinner. Still rather full from lunch._________________Count plates, not calories. Three a day. 8 years & counting
Age 64
SBMI Jan/10-30.8
Jan/12-26.8
Mar/13-24.9 Stayed at +/- 8-lb. for three years Sept/17 22.8 (but more fluctuation)
Mar/18 22.2

Sounds like you have turned a corner to get back on track. I must admit at the moment I am focusing on how much better I feel for not overeating and not eating too much sugar. My mood is so much more positive and I feel happier in myself even though there is stressful stuff going on in my life....

Jd_________________Never give up on a dream just because of the time it will take to accomplish it. The time will pass anyway.

It's those positive effects that have been the core for me, even if I get distracted along the way._________________Count plates, not calories. Three a day. 8 years & counting
Age 64
SBMI Jan/10-30.8
Jan/12-26.8
Mar/13-24.9 Stayed at +/- 8-lb. for three years Sept/17 22.8 (but more fluctuation)
Mar/18 22.2